Nine MIT researchers and alumni have been named Fellows of the National Academy of Inventors for 2025, joining a network of over 2,200 scientists and engineers whose patents have generated an estimated $3.8 trillion in revenue globally.
The honor recognizes sustained innovation across disciplines. Ahmad Bahai, a professor of practice in electrical engineering and computer science, brings four decades of experience from semiconductor companies like Texas Instruments and National Semiconductor, with more than 40 patents to his name. Kripa Varanasi, a mechanical engineering professor, has built a track record in interfacial science and advanced materials—and co-founded six companies from his research.
The other seven honorees span physics, chemistry, and electrical engineering. Robert William Brown, who earned his physics PhD from MIT in 1968, is among the most senior fellows named. Others include Shanhui Fan, whose physics research has influenced solar energy and photonics; Jun O. Liu, known for chemistry innovations; and Darryll Pines, whose work in mechanical engineering has shaped aerospace and structural systems.
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Start Your News DetoxWhat This Recognition Means
The NAI Fellows program, established in 2012, has become one of the most selective inventor honors in the United States. The collective patent portfolio of all NAI Fellows exceeds 86,000 U.S. patents—a measure of both breadth and depth of innovation. These aren't abstract achievements: the economic impact translates to an estimated 1.4 million jobs created globally, many in fields that didn't exist when these inventors began their work.
What's notable is the mix of academic researchers and entrepreneurs. Several of this year's MIT cohort have moved between university labs and founding companies, treating invention not as a one-time achievement but as an ongoing practice. That pattern—research, patenting, commercialization, return to research—has become increasingly common at MIT and other research institutions, blurring the old boundary between "pure" science and applied innovation.
The 2025 class will be formally honored at the NAI's 15th Annual Conference in June 2026, joining a cohort of inventors whose work spans renewable energy, computing architecture, materials science, and biomedical devices. For MIT, it's the latest recognition of a culture where invention is treated as a fundamental skill—not a rare gift, but something cultivated across departments and decades.
